What's the advantage to running Lasers for DS rear?Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry Meatmotor
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What's the advantage to running Lasers for DS rear?Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry Meatmotor
saves money. the rear DS spokes see the "dirtiest" air, and bladed spokes there give no aero benefit. Also, cheaper to replace if you suck the chain between the spokes and cassette.Quote:
Originally Posted by hozn
Ah, ok. Yeah, I probably wouldn't do that on a wheel I'm building. I'm either going to acknowledge that there's no meaningful aero advantage and just go Laser or I'm going to use CX Rays for the build enjoyment and aesthetic appreciation of the final product. And the bit of claimed additional strength. I just have to decide if that's worth $100. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry Meatmotor
Here's my new Busch & Muller Lumotec IQ CYO Premium T Senso Plus. It is connected to my Schmidt Dyno-hub. Like all German manufactured lights, it has an engineered beam that illuminates the trail but does not shine in oncoming cyclists' eyes.
The "senso" means it has two settings - day and night, which it can automatically sense. In daylight, the LED running lights are brighter and the main beam is dimmer (since it's not really needed), for better visibility. At night the main beam is brighter, so you can see the trail better.
I used this for the first time last Thursday and then for Midnight Saddles. Both Mr. Happy and I are happy with it.
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The two little wires hanging off the back are for a generator-run taillight, which I do not currently have.
Aha! That's the light I was running for the past couple of years, before I fitted my current B+M IQ-X this spring- you saw the newer light when I ran Midnight Saddles this past July. Isn't that big wide beam fun?Attachment 15621 (*This* is the quality of light Steve O has to work with now... No, I don't have a beam shot of the my IQ-X just yet.)Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve O
This is sitting at home, waiting for me to put it together (SE Lager fixie). Also have a carboy of oatmeal stout that needs kegging. Meanwhile, I sit bored at werk. Frustrating nonoptimization of time.
Attachment 15704
Not a very good snip, but will post a real pic once done. Is very pretty, especially for <$300.
Here it is completed. Need to get a Surley Tugnut, and some nonslick tires are on the way, but that's about it. Rode it this morning and it was fun, though a touch heavier and less nimble than the Fuji Feather was. The slicks actually worked in the wet leaves better than I expected, but I still want a little tread.Quote:
Originally Posted by huskerdont
Attachment 15708
Attachment 15709
Used the excuse of slightly damp pavement to finally take this for a ride after adding the tugnut, dishing the front wheel, and switching out the slicks with some Vredestein Fortezza Tricomps. It's really fun to ride a fixie again, but it does weigh more than the claimed 21.5 (comes in at about 25.7 with the addition of the tugnut, cycling computer, and bottle cage). It is heavier than the Fuji Feather I stupidly sold, and does not climb or respond quite as well. Despite that, it is still a pretty thing and is a joy to ride. (I suppose I might feel differently grunting up the Custis into Arlington this afternoon.)Quote:
Originally Posted by huskerdont
Tired of unwieldy battery packs on the cheap, though pretty bright, Chinese headlights, and their need for a special charger, I splurged on a Cygolite 1100 Metro Pro headlight last week. Charges using standard micro USB... I've got a couple dark rides under my belt with it now and am very pleased, though I still want to replace it eventually with dynamo lighting.
[emoji605] Sent from my ONEPLUS 3T using Tapatalk [emoji605]
Quote:
Originally Posted by ian74
Now that I'm about 3 months in, and so I can contribute something other than FS angst: here's a slightly more informed review on the ride/shifting/etc. for my "Pinion drive" bike.Quote:
Originally Posted by LhasaCM
Altogether, I've ridden it about 800 miles so far. Of that, 500 has been with my daughter on the trailer cycle, 100 with the empty trailer cycle, and 200 all by its lonesome. Since I got the fit dialed in (had to raise the saddle a bit more than I expected and had originally done for the 50 States ride), the ride has been really good. I'm not sure if it's the lower center of gravity with the gearbox location, just the weight of the thing, or something to do with lower resistance by having a freewheeling single speed rear tire, but going down hills it is amazingly fast (in a few cases I've crested a hill going slower than and a fair ways behind someone, only to catch up to them without even pedaling). The wider gear range has helped going up hills; I haven't found myself yet "wanting" for a gear as I did with my previous bike (had an Alfine 8).
Shifting has been (and continues to be) smooth, for the most part. There is a noticeable extra bit of effort in the gearbox when moving between groups (i.e., shifting between 6 and 7 or 12 and 13), especially when downshifting, but it is easy to anticipate now that I'm used to it. I think the biggest issue I've seen is that there is a slight performance penalty going up hills. Upshifting can be done while under load, so on the level or downhill you don't lose anything. However, the "pause" required to downshift, especially between groupings, does take away some of that precious momentum that is useful when transitioning to going up a hill. It's pretty much a non-issue on my commute since I now have a good sense of what gear I need when for things like the ramp up from M street to the MBT, but on less familiar routes, it is a bit taxing. To avoid coming to a sudden halt, the tendency is to overshoot the mark by downshifting too much, and then while pedaling upshift to where I need to be. That is getting to be less of an issue the more familiar I'm becoming with the bike/gears/etc., but will never go away.
I'll have to see how the "maintenance free" aspect works out as I put more wear and tear on the bike, especially when it comes time for the first oil change. If nothing else, I love not having to disconnect any cable when taking the rear wheel off.
All in all, it definitely feels faster than my old bike, even with the extra weight (even with the smaller 650b wheels, between the beefier frame and the slight weight increase in the gearbox, it weighs in around 4-5 lbs. heavier). It definitely has been easier to ride with a load (either groceries or a trailercycle), and feels a bit more grounded with the lower center of gravity. For my commuting needs, it's been great.